Delegate: Mr. Per Tore Woie
36. Mr. WOIE (Norway), recalling that the General Assembly had in its resolution 47/85 invited Governments to include more youth representatives in their delegations to the General Assembly, expressed the hope that the number of youth representatives participating in the debates of the fiftieth session of the General Assembly would be greater than it had been during the current session. The world programme of action for youth towards the year 2000 and beyond should be included in the agenda of the fiftieth session. In accordance with resolution 45/103, a plenary meeting of the fiftieth session of the General Assembly should be devoted to the tenth anniversary of International Youth Year. His delegation hoped that, as proposed by the Secretary-General in his report on policies and programmes involving youth (A/49/434), the General Assembly would allot sufficient time for consideration of the topic of youth.
37. As a result of a General Assembly initiative, the Youth Forum of the United Nations system, held at Vienna in 1991, had brought together 150 representatives of national, regional and international non-governmental organizations for youth and agencies of the United Nations. The next meeting of Youth Forum would be held in 1996; thereafter, the Forum would meet biennially.
38. While youth lacked diplomatic skills, experience and respect for formal procedures, they did have the necessary enthusiasm, open-mindedness and creativity to confront problems; a dialogue with youth would not only create a new dynamic in the entire United Nations community but would also enable large groups of the population to participate in decision-making processes all over the world. The International Conference on Population and Development, held at Cairo, had stressed the importance of youth participation in controlling population growth. Its Programme of Action highlighted the link between the lack of education among young women in many countries and world population growth.
39. He pointed to a disturbing current trend, namely young people’s lack of confidence in the established political system, which they no longer viewed as capable of guaranteeing their job security and access to education. That discouraged them from making use of their democratic rights. Uncertainty about their future, coupled with their lack of influence all over the world often left young persons indifferent or plunged them into despair. Those problems could be overcome if they were given an opportunity to participate in society and in the development of the world.
UN Doc.: A/C.3/49/SR.10
Cite as:
UN Doc.: A/C.3/49/SR.10, 20 October 1994, p. 11, Youth Delegate Search: https://youthdelegatesearch.org/norway-1994/, doi: 10.17176/20221018-195309-0.